Austin’s biggest law firm getting smaller

A substantial portion of Clark Thomas & Winters PC’s pharmaceutical practice group is leaving the firm, sparking rumors in legal circles that Austin’s largest firm may eventually dissolve.

At least eight lawyers from the firm are departing for Minneapolis-based Bowman and Brooke LLP, which plans to open its Austin office next week after opening a Dallas branch on Feb. 1, said Bowman and Brooke’s managing director in Dallas, Kurt Kern.

Meade Bauer, president of Clark Thomas & Winters, said “wild” rumors about the firm closing are “not based on fact,” and he indicates the firm will stick around — at least in the short term.

“We are going to adjust to the departure of the attorneys,” he said. “We have several alternatives and we are looking at them.”

He said the firm expects to decide on a course of action by the end of the month.

The firm reported $44.1 million in revenue in 2010, and the pharmaceutical practice group accounted for as much as 20 percent of that. There are about 30 lawyers in the pharmaceutical practice group, according to the firm’s website.

Bowman and Brooke, which will now employ about 185 attorneys nationwide, has leased about 20,000 square feet at 600 Congress Ave., a building owned by Thomas Property Group, according to sources.

Christian, who is acting as a spokesman for the group, said the new office will house about 30 people, half of which will be lawyers. He said the split has been “amicable and professional” and the move was born from a desire to practice at a national firm. Christian said rumors of Clark Thomas & Winters closing surprised him and he “imagines they could continue on."

Clark Thomas & Winters employs about 160 people in Austin, half of which are lawyers, Bauer said. The firm also has offices at 300 W. Sixth St., leasing about 90,000 square feet spread on three floors, part of which it has been trying to sublease.

The firm, founded in 1938, has offices in Austin, San Antonio and Houston. It employed about 96 lawyers in Feb. 2010, with 225 total employees, according to Austin Business Journal research.

In June, Clark Thomas & Winters’ six-person government affairs and land use group, led by John Joseph, left for Coats Rose Yale Ryman & Lee PC.

Clark Thomas & Winters also suffered a public relations black eye when former partner Walter Demond became embroiled in a scandal with Bennie Fuelberg, the former head of the Pedernales Electric Cooperative, according to media reports.

Demond faces trial later this year on felony theft, money laundering and misapplication of fiduciary property charges, according to reports. He has pleaded not guilty.